bpf: Fix netns reference imbalance in conntrack kfuncs
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · High · High
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 1 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CNA. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat.
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: bpf: Fix netns reference imbalance in conntrack kfuncs The opts argument of the BPF conntrack kfuncs can point to a shared map value. __bpf_nf_ct_lookup() and __bpf_nf_ct_alloc_entry() read opts->netns_id separately when acquiring and releasing the network namespace reference. The reference imbalance can occur as follows: CPU 0 CPU 1 read opts->netns_id (-1) skip get_net_ns_by_id() write opts->netns_id (id) read opts->netns_id (id) put_net(net) /* no matching get */ The reverse transition leaks the reference. Repeating the unmatched put can destroy a live namespace and crash later users. The kernel reported: Oops: general protection fault, probably for non-canonical address KASAN: null-ptr-deref in range [0x00000000000000e8-0x00000000000000ef] RIP: 0010:bpf_prog_test_run_xdp+0x52c/0x1700 Call Trace: __sys_bpf+0x1662/0x50c0 __x64_sys_bpf+0x73/0xb0 do_syscall_64+0xf9/0x540 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f Kernel panic - not syncing: Fatal exception Snapshot every input field of opts with READ_ONCE() before validating or using it. The netns_id snapshot keeps the namespace get/put pair balanced, while the other snapshots keep the remaining options from changing partway through an invocation. The individual reads can still observe an inconsistent combination during a concurrent update, but each selected field value remains stable for that invocation.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- No
- Technical impact
- Total
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
Remediation
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 6.1.191, 6.6.160, 6.12.114, 6.18.57, 7.1.9, 7.2
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
Not affected: 4 products
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-74715
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-8qqv-vcf6-q7hx
- 2026-10-16 Fix available: Linux/Linux@4af94462c0ca2187a02a1a6641020ae888c74d5c, Linux/[email protected] · CNA
- 2026-10-16 1 new reference · CNA
- 2026-10-18 CISA SSVC decision points changed
- 2026-10-21 Fix available: Linux/Linux@41731d4290400cb898f15f049ae4018d45415e69, Linux/[email protected], Linux/[email protected] +1 · CNA
- 2026-10-21 2 new references · CNA
- 2026-10-26 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-10-26 CVSS score changed · Red Hat
- 2026-10-30 Fix available: Linux/[email protected], Linux/Linux@cfde990193135a35637e55f69e83e4ab441e60ab · CNA
- 2026-10-30 1 new reference · CNA
References
Other 6
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/cfde990193135a35637e55f69e83e4ab441e60ab
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/fb22bedf0c4f4f05bfa6e4a7ec0fd97bbdff9ce8
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/41731d4290400cb898f15f049ae4018d45415e69
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4af94462c0ca2187a02a1a6641020ae888c74d5c
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e5e060eb63d10b41ab60fd955649479d99b38210
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/fdeba03fea78407a8c52faa99177c9f7f29f90eb
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Sources
- CVE-2026-74715 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-74715 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-8qqv-vcf6-q7hx · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-74715 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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